Cleaning device



E. H. ANDERSON CLEANING DEVICE July 9, 1935.

Filed Oct. 5, 1934 R O T N E V m Elinor 11A nderson ATTORNEY PatentedJuly 9, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

The present invention relates to a device for cleaning coverings havinga nap, such as suede, velvet, velours and the like.

The widespread use and popularity of suede,

5 velvet, velour and other nap fabrics in articles of apparel and in thehome has presented the problem of how these materials may be cleaned toremove dirt, dust, spots and the like in a convenient manner. Theproblem can be discussed specifically by reference to suede shoes, now acommon article of women's wear. There are really three problemsinvolved, the first of which is due to the nature and physicalcharacteristics of suede leather, the second to the circumstances underwhich cleaning is necessary (when the article to be cleaned is beingworn by a person) and the consequent limitation on the structure of thecleaning device, and the third the cost of that device.

Suede leather has a peculiar physical structure. It has a dense napwhich readily collects dirt and dust. One obvious means of removing suchdirt is a cloth, but this means fails because the use thereof causes thenap to lie down. This action not only further imprisons the dirt butalso impairs the appearance of the fabric because its attractivenessdepends upon the nap being raised at all times. The cleaning device mustbe such that it will not only satisfactorily remove dirt, but alsoperform this function without laying the nap of the fabric. Anotherobvious means is a brush but brushes do not satisfactorily remove dirtand dust.

The first and third problems above mentioned have been solved by theapplicant's discovery that sponge rubber, a readily available and cheapmaterial, has the peculiar property of being able satisfactorily toremove dirt without laying the nap. Furthermore, when the nap hasaccidentally been laid, sponge rubber can be used to recondition thenap.

Just why sponge rubber has the peculiar property set forth is a mattersubject to explanation as hereinafter set forth, but whatever may be theexplanation or reason, the fact remains that sponge rubber solves thefirst and third problems mentioned above, i. e., it presents a materialthat is cheap and possesses the peculiar property of removing dirtwithout laying the nap.

The three problems referred to were not solved however by discoveringthis special property of sponge rubber. It was desirable to devise acarrier and holder for the cleaning article to permit the convenientapplication thereof. It was also desirable to provide an article whichcould be readily carried by the person of the user, i. e.,

in a pocket or handbag. It was furthermore desirable to provide asuitable cover so that the sponge rubber would not transfer the dirtremoved to the person or other clothing of the user.

What has been said of suede leather and arti- 5 cles made therefrom, e.g., shoes, applies also to articles made of antelope leather and/orfabric having a thick nap, i. e., velvet, velveteen, velours, corduroy,felt, etc.

The present invention provides a solution of 10 the interrelatedproblems set forth above.

Further description of the invention will be made by reference to theaccompanying drawing which is intended solely for illustrative purposesto present one specific embodiment of the clean- 1 ing device, in which:

Figure 1 represents the article enclosed in its carrier and envelope andready for convenient disposal in a pocket or handbag.

Figure 2 represents the article with the enve- 20 lope folded back andexposing the sponge rubber.

Figure 3 shows the envelope folded so that it serves as a handle bymeans of which the article can readily be applied by hand to thesubstance to be cleaned.

The sponge rubber mass I may be as shown rectangular, having endportions 4. One of the fiat surfaces of the mass of rubber is securelyunited, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, with the central portion 3-3 of anenvelope 2 which por- 30 tion is at least substantially coextensive withthe adjacent surface of the sponge rubber and preferably extendssomewhat beyond the ends 4 of the rubber as shown at 3. The envelope hasside portions or flaps 5 which can be folded over the 35 rubber as awrapping to completely cover it and prevent its contact with the personor clothing of the user except when desired. These flaps are providedwith securing means such as a snap fastener 6 and provided withdimensions such that 40 one flap folds over the other as shown clearlyin Figure 1 and may be detachably secured thereto by means of said snapfastener 6.

When the cleaner is to be used the flaps 5 are folded apart and back asshown in Figure 3 so as 45 to be in finger-grasping spaced relation,whereupon by inserting one finger between the flaps and grasping thefiaps with the two adjacent fingers (or by an adjacent finger and thethumb as shown) the flaps serve as a convenient handle or means ofapplying the rubber to the article to be cleaned without soiling thefingers by contact with the sponge rubber. This is done by lightlyrubbing the article with the rubber, whereupon the rubber will removedirt and dust without destroying or laying the nap of the material to becleaned.

The envelope 2 comprising central portion 33 and flaps 5 may be made ofleather, sheet rubber, suede cloth or other suitable pliable material.Rubber has the advantage that it can be secured to the sponge rubber byvulcanization so as to be substantially integral therewith and sheetrubber for the envelope is preferable for that reason and because of itswater-proof characteristics. Suede cloth is a fabric somewhat resemblingsuede leather, is water repellent and offers, like rubber, the advantageof washability. Leather can be attached by cement to the sponge rubberbut offers the disadvantage that it is not well adapt ed to washing(except waterproof artificial leather). A substantial surface of contactbetween the sponge rubber and the envelope surface attached thereto isdesirable to withstand the shearing force which is communicated to thissurface during application of the article. Consequently it is desirablethat the sponge rubber have at least one fiat surface having an area ofthe order of at least one square inch.

It is also desirable that the sponge rubber (and surrounding envelope)have a somewhat elongated shape as shown because the envelope is alsothe handle by means of which the rubber is applied and it is convenientthat the handle be sufficiently long so that it cooperates convenientlywith the fingers of the hand as shown in Figure 3.

It will be noted by reference to the drawing that the mass of spongerubber has one axis that measures the length (parallel to the edges 1 ofthe strip) and another axis (parallel to the edges 8) that measures thewidth. The strip of material serving as support, envelope and means ofapplication of said sponge rubber has edges 8 which measure the lengththereof and edges 1 defining the ends of the strip. The sponge rubber ispositioned so that one axis thereof (the long axis in Figures 1, 2 and.3) is substantially at right angles to the edges 8 (measuring thelength of the strip) and about midway between the edges 1 with one ofthe flat surfaces of the sponge securely attached to the strip the widthof which is somewhat great. r than the length of the sponge rubber mass.The portions or flaps 5 are therefore adapted to be foided together (asshown in Figure 1) to form an envelope enclosing'and coaxial with themass of sponge rubber the ends 4 of which are then recessed within theedges 8 of the strip. Moreover each of the flaps 5 has about the samesurface and during application of the sponge rubber are folded apart asshown in Figure 3 into fingergrasping spaced relation thereby serving asa holder or handle. The two axes of the sponge rubber might be equal, i.e., the latter may be square or circular. It is preferred, however, tohave the shape somewhat elongated as shown.

The virtue of having the ends of the sponge rubber recessed as shown isthat this feature keeps .those ends out of contact with surroundingobiects without the necessity of special end pieces. Such end piecesmight be used but they would be awkward and would interfere with theconvenient function of the flaps I (cooperating with the fingers of theuser as shown in Figure 3) when these are employed as a handle.

As already indicated, sponge rubber is the material which, so far asknown at present, is best adapted for the purpose of the presentinvention and an investigation of the reasons for this peculiarphenomenon leads to the following conclusionsz Sponge rubber has alarger external and internal surface due to its possession of astructure characterized by a large number of small cells. Therefore itis able to retain and absorb dirt and dust very efllciently due to thelarge surface of contact presented by a small volume of the spongerubber. The walls of the cells at the surface of the sponge rubber aremore or less perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned and thereforepresent an innumerable number of scrapers. The walls of these cells havethe inherent resilience of rub.- ber and friction thereof in contactwith other surfacesand although due to this friction the dirt removingefliciency is high, no injury to nap surfaces is caused by virtue of thesoftness, resiliency and elasticity of the cell walls. Moreover, spongerubber can readily be washed and freed from its accumulation of dirt.

Although the invention has been described in sufficient detail andclarity' to enable it to be practiced by those skilled in the art, nolimitation of the claim is intended other than may be called for by theprior art.

What I claim is:

In a cleaning device, an elongated and relatively narrow cleaning massof sponge rubber having a flat surface of considerable area, anelongated rectangular sheet of flexible material having its centralportion directly secured to said flat surface, the length of the massbeing less than and extending in the direction of the width of thesheet, said sheet forming resultant side flaps of substantially equallength, said flaps being of a length to be foldable around the entiremass with the adjacent edges disposed in overlapping relation, andseparable fastening elements for the flaps respectively attachedthereto, said flaps when unfastened being capable of being reverselybent to form resultant holding wings whereby said mass may bereciprocated in the direction of its length.

ELINOR H. ANDERSON.

